Land South of Riverside, Maltings Road, Battlesbridge, SS11 7RH

Authority: Chelmsford Borough Council
Appeal type: minor · Planning Appeal
Procedure: Written Representations
Development: residential · Minor Dwellings
Inspector: Smith A

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

Whether or not inappropriate development in the Green Belt
The effect upon the openness of the Green Belt
The effect of the gates upon the character and appearance of the area
Whether or not acceptable development, having particular regard to the site's flood zone location
If found to be inappropriate development in the Green Belt, whether or not the harm by reason of inappropriateness, and any other harm, would be clearly outweighed by other considerations so as to amount to the very special circumstances necessary to justify the development

What decided it

The substantial harm to Green Belt openness combined with unacceptable flood risk for highly vulnerable residential development in Flood Zone 3 cannot be outweighed by the modest benefits claimed, and very special circumstances have not been demonstrated.

Plan policies cited: Policy SS11, Policy DM6, Policy DM10, Policy DM23, Policy S2, Policy DM18

Read the decision letter on the Inspectorate’s site

The main issues and the deciding factor are read from the published letter by Town Planner Pro; the letter itself is the record. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Research, not advice.

What an account adds

Draw a red line around your site and the appraisal follows.

Heritage. Listed buildings by grade and distance, conservation areas, scheduled monuments, registered parks and gardens, heritage at risk.
Landscape and environment. Green belt, national parks and national landscapes, SSSIs, ancient woodland, SPA, SAC and Ramsar sites, nutrient catchments.
Flooding. Flood zones 2 and 3, surface water, and both again with climate change.
Transport. The 800 metre station catchment and service frequency, bus stops with their weekday frequency, the cycle network, and the Framework’s transport tests measured for the site.

Then the development plan position, the housing land supply as an Inspector last accepted it, and every appeal decided around the site with its letter.

Every English appeal since 2016, with the letter behind it wherever the Inspectorate published one. Searched by meaning as well as by words, with the key case law counted live across the letters.

Casework that chases the deadlines. Applications, appeals and conditions with their statutory dates.

The judgement stays yours. The tool gathers the material and dates it.